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A lawyer for a teenager accused of assaulting a teacher’s aide at a Florida school has filed a motion saying his client is “not mentally competent to stand trial.”
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office says the attack happened after the teacher’s aide took away the student’s video game device. The student, who is 17, is charged with a felony and is being tried in adult court.
“The student stated that he was upset because the victim took his Nintendo Switch away from him during class,” a news release from the office says.
A defense attorney filed a motion asking that experts consider the mental competency of the teen.
Court documents indicate the student was living in a group home for children and young adults with certain disabilities including autism and developmental disabilities. Group home care involves people with varying disabilities living together and receiving support from staff that may include therapists or health aides.
In the motion filed Friday, the defense attorney wrote he believes the student is not mentally competent to proceed in the legal process, a legal standard defined as a person’s ability to make rational decisions and express themselves.
The teen was charged with aggravated battery on a school board employee, a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison in Florida.
The teen is being held in the Duval County jail on $1 million bond.
$1 MILLION BOND:Student accused of attacking teacher’s aide over Nintendo Switch held on $1 million bond
What does the defense motion say?
The defense attorney, Kurt Teifke, said review of school, medical and mental health records, and information from the defendant and his family members have led attorneys to believe the student is “not mentally competent to stand trial,” the motion says.
In the legal context, mental competency means a person’s capacity to understand the basic nature and purpose of court proceedings, their roles with respect to other parties in the courtrooms and possible legal consequences of their actions, according to the Legal Information Institute at Cornell Law School.
Teifke also filed a plea of not guilty and requested additional time to file motions.
The motion filed Friday also waives the student’s appearance at his arraignment, which is slated for Monday morning.
VIOLENT ATTACK:Video shows teen attack school employee
What happens if the defendant is found not competent to stand trial?
Defendants who are ruled not competent to proceed are often committed to state psychiatric hospitals for treatment until they are judged to have regained competency. At that point, the legal case against them can proceed.
A judge will ultimately rule on whether the student is competent to proceed or not in the legal process based on the results of tests meant to measure decision-making. The News-Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network, contacted the student’s mother, who declined to comment and referred calls to Teifke.
Teifke could not be reached for comment.
What happened during the attack?
The student was shown attacking a teacher’s aide, Joan Naydich, on Feb. 21 in security footage that has since spread widely online. Naydich works as a paraprofessional, charging documents showed. A paraprofessional is assigned to support students with individual education plans, according to the district.
Video shows a person identified as the defendant walking quickly up to a woman, knocking her off her feet and onto the floor. The video then shows the student beating the aide as she lies unresponsive on the floor.
The attack lasts about 25 seconds, according to the footage, and in the video a handful of people are seen pulling the student off the employee and restraining him.
The employee was taken to a hospital to get treated for “severe injuries”, according to a press release from the sheriff’s office.
The student was escorted from the area and later placed in custody, the sheriff’s office reported.
The student had three prior misdemeanor battery charges in Hillsborough County, Florida.
Contributing: Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY
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